Monsanto Outline

photo from John Pollack

- My research topic will discuss the food company Monsanto and their production of  a dangerous herbicide called roundup that kills all  plants except their own because the genetically modified seeds they produce won't be killed by the herbicide.


Why?

- The roundup poses a problem for small farmers by cross pollinating and killing their plants. 

-The genetically modified corn that Monsanto uses is being fed to livestock such as cows and fish, that causes them to have health problems. The unhealthy livestock is then fed to people and can cause new allergens and health issues. 

My Audiences:

- I have chosen a group of uneducated people who are concerned about their diet. Showing clips of the movie "The World According to Monsanto" will  cause them to  become more educated on this issue.  
- My second audience will be members of the FDA, I will write a letter describing the harm that Monsanto has on local farmers and the production of non-genetically modified food.


Why is knowing about Monsanto important?
-The Monsanto corporation produces a vast majority of the crops that we consume.
-The roundup herbicide that Monsanto uses doesn't decompose in soil and is cross pollinating with other farms, leaving them without a crop.
- Monsanto's crop is fed to livestock that causes them health problems, that in turn causes new allergens and health issues in people. 

What is being done:
As of now, not many people are informed or aware of the corrupt ways that Monsanto is run. The company Monsanto has strong ties with the government, which helps cover up the harm that they cause to future crop production and the health problems they have developed in livestock and people who eat the livestock. 


What should be done:
The production of the harmful herbicide "roundup" should be illegal considering all of the damage it causes. Companies should start labeling their products when they use GMOs so people actually know what they are eating.




Bibliography:


Pascale, Richard T. Surfing the Edge of Chaos. New York: Crown Business, 2000.

The World According to Monsanto. National Film Board of Canada, 2008. DVD.

Food, Inc. Dir. Robert Kenner. Perf. Micheal Pollan and Eric Schlosser. Participant Media, 2008. DVD.

 

Www.monsanto.com. Monsanto Company. Web. <www.monsanto.com>.

Pollack, Andrew. "Justices Back Monsanto on Biotech Seed Planting." The New York Times 21 June 2010.

Monsanto Effect

My research project will cover the company Monsanto and its influence on our environment, our diet and our government. Monsanto produces a herbicide called roundup that kills all  plants except their own because the genetically modified seeds they produce won't be killed by the herbicide. Monsanto has strong ties with the American government that helps protect their interests. The roundup poses a problem for small farmers by cross pollinating and killing their plants. The genetically modified corn that Monsanto uses is being fed to livestock such as cows and fish, that causes them to have health problems. The unhealthy livestock is then fed to people and can cause new allergens and health issues.

-Produce herbicide called "roundup" that kills all plants except their own because the genetically modified seeds they produce won't be killed by the roundup.
-  The roundup cross pollinates with other farms, destroying all of their crops.
- The Monsanto crop is fed to livestock causing them health problems. 

One of the audiences I have chosen is a group of uneducated people who are concerned about their diet. One of the forms of communication that I will use is clips from the documentary "The World According to Monsanto". Not many people have heard of or know the effect that Monsanto  has on many of the foods they eat. Educating these people could help the Monsanto issue spread, and change the types of foods people buy. (Picture from greenplanetparadise.com)

-  I have chosen a group of uneducated people who are concerned about their diet. Showing clips of the movie "The World According to Monsanto" will  cause them to  become more educated on this issue. 

The second audience will be the United States government or people who are interested in the way that the government is run. My form of communication will include a letter written to the FDA describing the harm that Monsanto has on local farmers and the production of non-genetically modified food. I will also inform people who are interested in the way the government is run on the ties that they share with Monsanto and how it effects local farmers.

- The Government, include a letter to the FDA describing the harm that Monsanto is causing.
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/the-world-according-to-monsanto/

throwing

Key concept chapter two

"Systems have inputs, flows, and outputs of matter and energy, and feedback can affect their behavior."

This concept describes the way that components in a environment work together to make a system. The inputs in the environment work together to make an output that either benefits or hurts the environment.

This concept is interesting because of the way that the system is able to change when the feedback they receive changes.


A diagram is used to illustrate the way a feed-back loop works. The diagram starts with the input and then shows the way that the throughputs can change the output into something negative or positive.
It's interesting how the diagram can change from something negative to positive.

Key Concepts of Chapter one

"As our ecological footprints grow, we are depleting and degrading more of the earth's natural capital."

This concept describes the way humans are effecting the earth's sustainability by wasting  the earth's natural resources.   As peoples' ecological footprints continue to grow, the earth's natural capital depreciates.

The key concept is interesting because it shows the different ways of life and culture that humans have and how that effects their ecological footprint.

"the U.S. per capita ecological footprint was about 4.5 times the average global footprint, and 12 times the average per capita footprint, and 12 times the average per capita footprint of the world's low-income countries."
This data points describes the vast difference between the global footprint of an American and a  citizen of a poor country. This is an interesting data point because if every citizen lived as Americans do, the world would not be able to provide enough resources for people to survive.